Chicken & Butternut Squash Risotto

Chicken & Butternut Squash Risotto

- 1 1/2 cups roasted butternut squash (if you can find a 12 oz can of squash, go ahead and use that!)
- 1 chicken breast, seasoned with salt & pepper, cooked (I sauteed in olive oil) then cut or shredded into bite sized pieces
- 4 cups chicken broth
- 1 cup water
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1/2 onion, finely chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, minced (Jane note: I used my garlic press)
- 2 cups arborio rice
- 1 cup dry white wine
- Dash nutmeg
- Salt and pepper
- 1 cup grated parmigiano-reggiano cheese
- 2 tablespoons butter, cut into small pieces
- Heaping teaspoon of fresh thyme leaves
- 1/2 C water (may not need)

Cut up a butternut squash into 8 pieces. Wrap in foil and roast in 375 degree oven for about 45 minutes, or until very soft. Scoop flesh out of the skins. One squash will yield more than 1 1/2 C, so save the rest for another recipe or freeze for later. Have the squash and cooked chicken breast ready to go before proceeding with the next steps.

In a large saucepan, bring the chicken broth and 1 cup water to a boil over medium-high heat, then turn the heat to low.

In a large skillet, heat the oil, 2 turns of the pan, over medium-high heat. When the oil is rippling, add the onion and garlic and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, 2 minutes. Add the rice and toast (and stir occasionally) for 3 minutes. Stir in the wine and cook, stirring occasionally, until mostly evaporated, 2 to 3 minutes.

Add 2 ladles of the warm chicken broth to the rice and stir until the liquid evaporates. Add the chicken stock, 2 ladles at a time, stirring almost constantly and waiting for the stock to be absorbed before adding more. This process should take about 20 minutes. (I ended up having to add an additional 1/2 C water at the end to get the rice soft enough. If you need to add much more than 1/2 C, I would use broth as opposed to water to maintain flavor.)

During the last 3 minutes of cooking, stir in the squash; season with nutmeg, thyme, salt and pepper to taste. During the last minute of cooking, stir in the cheese and butter.

You can leave the chicken out to make a vegetarian dish…it still tastes great!